This invention generally relates to registration units for use in apparatus such as printing presses or collators for performing operations such as printing, perforating, punching, die cutting, and the like on a continuous paper web. Specifically, it relates to such units for registering the phase or angular displacement of one roller relative to another used in performing particular operations on the web. In the print operation these rollers or cylinders are the plate and impression cylinders. In the die cutting operation they are the die and anvil cylinders. In the punching operation they are the male and female punch cylinders and the associated drive shaft. And in the perforating operation they are the perforator and anvil cylinders. The importance of proper registration is well recognized in the art, but generally it is to insure that each operation is performed on the traveling paper web at precisely the proper time in relation to the other operations.
Registration units of this general type are known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,762,698 issued Oct. 2, 1973, and assigned to the same assignee as the present application, discloses a registration unit of which the present unit is an improvement. The drive connection or registration unit of the referenced patent is specifically for phase registration of a fanfolding machine with the traveling web and includes an electric motor and worm drive mounted on a shaft inboard of the folder frame, said shaft extending through the frame and having an output gear mounted thereto on the outboard side of the frame. Power is transmitted from the shaft to the output gear through the motor driven gear assembly, and actuation of the motor causes angular displacement of the output gear relative to the shaft and in this way precise registration of the fanfolder is accomplished.
While the unit of the referenced patent was exceptionally useful in registering the folder to the traveling web, its design with the motor and worm drive mounted inboard of the frame was found to be undesirable for other applications such as the printing, punching, die cutting, and perforating applications.
Thus, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide registration units which overcome this disadvantage and where the motor and worm drive assembly is mounted outboard of the frame for greater accessibility and proper interface.
In one aspect of the invention a sleeve is rotatably mounted about a shaft outboard of the frame between which the shafts or cylinders to be registered are mounted. Affixed to the sleeve or as part of the sleeve is an output gear and an output drive gear, also located outboard of the frame. The motor and worm gear assembly is mounted on the shaft outboard of the sleeve and engages the output drive gear such that actuation of the motor produces rotation of the sleeve, output drive gear and output gear relative to the shaft. This arrangement is particularly useful for the printing, punching, and perforating operations.
In another aspect of the invention, the sleeve extends through the frame for rotation therein and the output gear is mounted inboard of the frame. This arrangement has been found particularly useful in the die cutting operation and allows use of a symmetrical die which can be changed end to end for longer life.
Thus, it is the primary purpose of this invention to provide an improved registration unit of the type disclosed in the referenced patent particularly suited for use with printing, die cutting, punching, and perforating operations, and where the motor and drive unit is mounted outboad of the frame. These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the drawing and detailed description to follow.